Penang, Malaysia

Exploring with a Bag of Juice January 7, 2012

I arrive in Penang by bus in the late afternoon.  It's an island on the western side of Malaysia known for it's excellent hawker food.   Penang is somewhere in between a city and a town.  There's not really any tall buildings, but there are still motorbikes racing about all over the place.  I basically spend the day exploring the city on foot.

I check out:
-the odd products and smells in Chinatown
-the interesting music from Little India
-a couple temples and Chinese assemblies

Somewhere along the way I find a hawker stall which sells fruit shakes and buy one "to-go".  The 'to-go cup' is a plastic bag, the 'handle' is a plastic string, and you drink out of it with a plastic straw.  At first I found it odd, then I actually preferred it to a real cup.  You can hold onto the thing with one only finger, or hang it on the handlebars of your motorbike, or tie it to your belt...whatever you want.

The only other thing to note is that I haven't had a beer in a long time.  Muslim countries are not big fans of alcohol and thus it is taxed heavily (i.e. it's expensive)

Not my photo, but a cool view of the hostel I stay in.

Penang 

Penang

and the bag of juice, of course

Badminton and Grocery Store Oddities January 8, 2012

After waking up at around 10:30am (I can sleep in if I wanna), I find that the free breakfast is still out.  Apparently the hostel has breakfast until 11am: The Old Penang Guesthouse is my kinda place.  I decide that today is going to be the day I go out and eat as may interesting things as I can find.  The hostel gave me a list of the food specialties of the city so I go forth to eat as many as I can find.  The food is so cheap and good, you're doing a great disservice to not try as much as possible.

Cendol- A dessert with green pasta, beans, ground up ice, some kind of milky stuff, and a sweet sauce.  It's interesting...not everyday you find pasta and beans in a dessert.



Roti Canai- It's similar to a crepe or very thin pancake.  My favorite one is with banana in the middle.  It usually comes with a spicy sauce so you get a mix of sweet and spicy.  Obviously the ones from the hawker stall are not presented so elegantly, but they still taste excellent.



Kuey Teow- This one is a fried noodle and vegetable dish with egg, shrimp or chicken, chilies, and bean sprouts.  You find this everywhere and it's quick to make, cheap, and good.


In between eating my second and third lunch I find myself in a shopping mall.  It has one department store, one grocery store, and a bunch of other random stores.  I notice a group of people ahead watching something on a t.v. in an electronic shop so I stop and watch.  It's a badminton match which is apparently quite popular in Malaysia.  Upon closer examination I see that it is China (Lin) vs. Malaysia (Lee) and the crowd watching is really into it.  It's like a football game in the States or a soccer game in Europe, people are cheering and cussing.  I'm not exactly sure what is being said but I know a cheer and a curse when I hear it.  I watch for about 30 minutes with the growing crowd, cheer for Malaysia of course, and when the home team wins, I move on.  Go Malaysia!

I next wander into the grocery store.  I always find it interesting to explore the grocery stores in different places.  There's always a fair amount of "What in the world is THIS stuff" or "THAT looks disgusting".  In this particular case, after noticing a box with a birds nest of the front,  it was "How in the hell do you cook a birds nest?"  I know it's some kind of Chinese thing but it boggles my mind how this could turn into something edible.  Onward.

I finish the day with dinner in Little India with a Chinese guy I met at the hostel.  He is also and engineer so we have some common ground.  I learn he has been in India for over a month.  Back at the hostel we watch a soccer match with a couple English guys on the t.v.

"Ain't that a bit racialist"

Some sort of...things

Adventures on a Motorbike January 9, 2012

I start the day with a conversation about the differences between China and the United States over toast and tea with my friend from last night.

I decide I must rent a motorbike, blend in with the locals, and expand my reach.  You can only explore so far on foot.  The guy renting motorbikes simply asks if I have a drivers license, I say "yes", and this is apparently all that is needed  ...no proof .  Then I fill out a form.  I don't have my passport since it's currently at the Thai embassy so I just make up a passport number.  It's all a formalily anyway.  There's no insurance, no nothing.  All of the liability is on you.   It's a bit  less strict than renting a car for example. He gives me a helmet and a bike and I'm off.

Now I've bungy jumped, skydived, hiked glaciers, and tramped though rivers in limestone caves in NZ, but driving a motorbike in a Malaysian city is by far the most dangerous thing I've done so far. First they drive on the other side of the road, second they don't respect traffic order (i.e.  motorbikes go down the shoulder, middle, wherever there's an opening), third they don't use signals, and fourth they don't even always drive on the correct side of the street.  I start by simply following other bikers to get a feel for the sport and practice a little.  After awhile I learn that there is a certain order to the chaos.  Bikers rule the road, get to the beginning of the line, weave up the the front during red lights.  I follow suit and find it's oddly enjoyable for someone who absolutely hates traffic with a passion.

I really feel like part of the city on a bike instead of a outside observer.

I confirm my notion that I can never buy a motorcycle.  I was going down highways at about 60-70 mph at the fastest and the speed is intoxicating.  I would most likely kill myself after getting more comforable riding o the thing.

After exploring the city for awhile I decide to get out and head down the coast to see what outside of the city.  My first discovery is a tropical fruit farm.  They have a tour and you get to try a bunch of different local fruits.

My second discovery is a small fishing village which I eat lunch at.  I meet a guy who has been to Louisiana.  He was working on an oil vessel in the Gulf of Mexico.  What a small world.

I basically ride around all day until its dark.  I return the bike (I am alive and unscathed I might add) and look for a good hawker stall for dinner.  I find an interesting one and talk to a local while we stand in front and eat.

I get my passport back from the front desk, and quickly say hello to a dutch woman from yesterday.  Another Thai sticker has been added and the damn thing is starting to look like a stamp collection or something.

Possibly the coolest motor-biker in all of Malaysia

Fishing Village

Lunch @ fishing village

I liked the fishing village

Deliciousness.